Today’s Wisdom: “If you’re not making someone else’s life better, then you’re wasting your time.” Will Smith By Bill D. Ward With winter soon upon us, we all might be looking forward to the next five months with dread. However, other than a general dislike for winter, it really isn’t such a traumatic season anymore. Times have changed, and at least with winter, we have been the beneficiaries. The snowplow that covers our street is usually past long before I rise in the morni

Music has always been a positive force in the life of this MCC member By Nikki Rajala Michelle Dettmann and her brother Dave ”play” their family’s piano in the mid-1970s. Her parents sang alto-tenor duets, often for funerals, and also in church choirs. Contributed photo “There’s something wonderful about singing together that’s hard to explain,” said Michelle Dettmann, a member of the Minnesota Center Chorale (MCC). “Everyone around me is breathing together, and we’re one or

Answers provided by Alexandra R. Borders, Au.D., CCC-A at St. Cloud ENT Alexandra R. Borders, Au.D., CCC-A at St. Cloud ENT. Contributed photo What can I do to stay connected despite hearing loss? Communication is a two-way street. But when someone has hearing loss, that road can become much more difficult to navigate, even with hearing aids. A hearing aid does not fix hearing loss or restore normal hearing. Instead, it helps a person hear more of the sounds around them and

By Stanley Musielewicz of Little Falls Medallion hunts have been around for a lot of years now. They seem to be the thing to do, for fairs and festivals. They add an extra layer of excitement to the event, and may even add to the overall participation. The hunts seem to be relatively easy to set up and execute. One honest and trustworthy event official is entrusted with hiding the medallion. They are the only person who knows the location of the treasured item. Then they writ

Written by Dr. Randy Hamling, Accelerated Chiropractic, Morris Dr. Randy Hamling (right) talks with a patient about knee pain and potential treatment options at Accelerated Chiropractic in Morris. Contributed photo What are your knees trying to tell you before winter? You already know which chairs are too low. You know which pew at church is going to make you wince when you stand. And you’re already doing the math on winter — the sidewalk, the driveway, the parking lot at the

Sue Peterson of Alexandria, Minn., shared this calm evening scene with a family of geese gathered along the water. The sunset reflecting across the pond made a peaceful backdrop for their visit. Grace Picka of New Prague shared these two views of a striking red sun hanging low in the hazy sky. Seen from both near and far, the unusual color made it hard to miss. It seems the birds were not the only ones interested in what was being served. Gail Kloos of Dalton, Minn., caught

By Jan Stadtherr There are some things about moving into a new home that take a little getting used to. Not just where all the light switches are but even remembering the path to the appliances within my new kitchen, which is completely opposite from the previous one. Can I attribute my extra steps to the color of my hair or is it the aging process? I think I hear both. And then there are the trains! We were not aware that there were such things in our new neighborhood in Ale

By Marilyn Salzl Brinkmaan of Cold Spring Sometimes my memory walks backwards in time to those days when my life revolved around simple school days. My childhood took a new turn. My brothers, Willie and Vern, with their lunch packed in baskets and ready for school. Contributed photo One-room frame schoolhouses once dotted the rural countryside. They were white rectangular structures with small entry halls to hold coats, boots, lunch buckets, and wood for the stove. Their wind

Fargo man, sober for 11 years, now helps others struggling with addiction By Carol Stender Dave Artz of Fargo was literally flying high when he celebrated 10 years of sobriety – make that 10,000 feet in the air. The Fargo man went skydiving to note the milestone. The fact that he doesn’t like heights made no difference. Dave Artz (left) of Fargo celebrated his 10 years of sobriety last year by skydiving with some friends. Dave has had an eclectic life story. He was adopted at

By Rachel Barduson of Alexandria It’s a small paper folder holding a combustible sulfur material on the end of slim cardboard pieces – with a course, a striking surface on the outside that is used to start... a FIRE. Matchbooks, back in the day, were of necessity, so to speak. They were used without much thought until they weren’t as available as they once were. I, for one, took them for granted. Their purpose was for convenience and to be discarded once empty. I did not thin

Most Minnesota counties will be affected this year By Jim Palmer Last year, after one big insurance company exited the Medicare market, more than 160,000 people in Minnesota lost their coverage. In addition, the companies that remained offered fewer benefits than the year before. This fall, the report is likely similar... but the impact may be larger. Dennis Breitenfeldt, founder of Breitenfeldt Group. Contributed photo “This year, the number of people who may lose their cov

Answers by Mitchell Gossman, MD, an ophthalmologist at Eye Associates of Central Minnesota, located in St. Cloud If you see new flashing lights, new floaters, or new peripheral vision loss, it could be signs of a retinal detachment and you should be seen by a ophthalmologist as soon as possible. Stock photo I’m seeing flashing lights in my vision, and Googling suggests I might have a retinal detachment. Is this true? The retina is the light sensitive tissue in the back of the

Written by Randall (Randy) Strand of Little Canada, who recently passed away. Submitted by his sister, Renetta (Strand) Engleson of Rapidan I grew up on a farm in Southern Minnesota and was in my late teens when the United States was preparing to land the first men on the moon. One of my chores on the farm was to make sure the water tanks were full, so the cattle had something to drink. The tanks were large and took quite a while to fill. My practice was to turn on the water

By Jean Olson of Arlington The Olson kids and neighbor kids ready to walk to Sunday school. Jean is center front, brother Howard on the left, and sister Karen behind her. Contributed photo I once attended a reading by Minnesota author Faith Sullivan. I had read and loved her novel called The Cape Ann, and I was especially intrigued because the family in the story lived in their small town’s train depot. Until then, I believed mine was the only family on earth that ever actua

Man, 91, was an islander, pilot, entrepreneur By Bill Vossler Bill Woishke grew up in an unusual place, in an unusual town, and in an unusual way. And his life story... it’s anything but usual. The curiosities began for the St. Cloud man with his birth in 1935 on an unusually-small island in Lake Erie, South Bass Island, 3.7 miles long and 1.5 miles wide—to parents who met in an unusual way. Bill Woishke grew up on an island on Lake Erie and learned to fly this 14-passenger T

By Nancy Leasman of Long Prairie I obviously erred when I planted tomatoes outside the fenced garden. First win for the hungry wildlife. I also offered them fresh cucumbers in the same vicinity. No takers. (Cucumbers are prickly on tender mouths.) Let’s back up. I planted tomatoes in the fenced garden. For whatever reason, lack of rain, too much shade, they grew spindly and offered the equivalent produce of a Charlie Brown Christmas tree. The plants outside the fence, in the

I’ve made plenty of mistakes in my life. Some big ones, lots of small ones, and a few corny ones. A good example of a corny one happened on Labor Day weekend. After a few wild weeks with both work and family things in late August/early September, I was enjoying a nice quiet day at home on Labor Day. I had finished up a few jobs at the office in the morning and stopped at a sweet corn stand on the way home to grab some corn on the cob for supper. It was a good batch, and my fa

Clara City man, with help from his wife, has been rebuilding and restoring planes for nearly 60 years By Scott Thoma Joyce and Howard Kron stand outside the 1935 Stinson Reliant plane they are currently rebuilding. The couple has been married for 60 years and have worked on planes together for most of those years. Photo by Scott Thoma It’s difficult enough to put a scale model of an airplane together, let alone a real one. Howard Kron of Clara City has been doing just that fo

By Cindy Pazdernik of Alexandria Do you believe in “luck” on God’s interventions in your life? I believe, in faith, that life storms clear a path for God to show the way! A few years ago my two daughters asked me if I had a “bucket list,” something I would like to do or a place I would like to visit. After some thought, I said, “I would like to visit and see Wales.” A scene from our fun adventure to Abergynolwyn. Contributed photo My grandparents came from Wales in the early

Deer Creek woman honors family lineage in unique ways By Carol Stender Kathy Ziese of Deer Creek has honored her family heritage which dates back to the founding of America. Her Grandma Mabel Rohr was a Hancock and often stated they were related to John Hancock. The direct family line goes back to Joseph Hancock who fought under Gen. George Washington at Valley Forge. Photos by Carol Stender Kathy Ziese of Deer Creek has honored her family lineage to John Hancock in some uniq